Scotland route

Scotland’s Railway

Network Rail Scotland serves people, businesses and local communities from the borders in the south, to Wick and Thurso in the far northeast of Scotland. We manage a diverse railway including busy intercity lines between Scotland’s eight cities and more rural lines in the Highlands.

Passenger services in Scotland are operated primarily by ScotRail, the publicly owned operator. Other passenger operators run trains to and from Scotland, including Caledonian Sleeper, London North Eastern Railway (LNER), Avanti West Coast, Lumo, CrossCountry and TransPennine Express (TPE). Our freight operators include Colas, Direct Rail Services, DB Cargo UK, Freightliner, GB Railfreight and Varamis.

Scotland’s Railway provides substantial benefits for the people of Scotland and those who visit. In 2022/23 there were 69.4 million passenger journeys for Scotland, of which a total of 9.2 million were journeys made to or from England and Wales.

Map of Network Rail Scotland

Scotland’s Railway also delivers vital, sustainable routes to market for businesses and supports our nation’s economy. The railway is a major contributor to sustainable economic growth and is part of Scotland’s integrated public transport network. We have a strong focus on the development of freight in Scotland as a key contributor to the delivery of the Scottish Government’s net zero ambitions.

We’re proud to continue growing the railway in Scotland and realise the difference that we can make to communities and businesses over the next five years as we make this the best railway Scotland’s ever had.

Liam Sumpter
Managing director, Scotland’s Railway

Scotland’s Railway in numbers:

  • 69.4 million passengers travelled with us in 2022/2023
  • 3,200 employees work for Network Rail in Scotland
  • A total of 362 stations, including our major stations, Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley.
  • 2,668 miles of track
  • Over 2,500 passenger and freight services every day
  • We manage and maintain 4,715 bridges, 591 level crossings and 4,326 signals
  • On average, 250 freight trains transport over 85,000 tonnes of goods on Scotland’s Railway each week.

Find out more

Latest news

Train operators (TOCs)

Freight operators (FOCs)

Safety

We work closely with local communities to promote safety by the railway. Find out more on our community safety page.